Product Voices: Recent Episodes
Product Voices, hosted by JJ Rorie
People who work in product management are on a constant learning journey. Markets are dynamic. Customer needs are transient. Technologies evolve. The ways in which we work changes. We must learn and adapt along the way. Product Voices is a forum to share practical, real-world stories about how to learn and grow in important areas in product management. Learn from the best voices in product management.
Connor Joyce, author of "Bridging Intention to Impact" and senior user researcher at Microsoft joins us to discuss his book where he emphasizes the importance of focusing on user outcomes and behaviors in product management.
He shares his journey in writing the book, stressing the need for evidence-backed decision-making and experimentation to drive successful products. Connor advocates for prioritizing user needs over usage metrics and implementing a culture of data-driven decision-making throughout organizations.
The episode provides practical advice for product managers looking to create impactful product outcomes.
Purni Siddarth, Principal Product Manager at Peek shares key insights from her experience at Expedia, Dividend Finance, and Peek, emphasizing the importance of optimized processes, software choices, and infrastructure for successful scalability. She advocates for a minimum viable approach, collaboration, and feedback to drive effective product scaling. Tune in for valuable perspectives on enhancing your product management skills.
Join us in this episode as we chat with Chad McAllister, a renowned product management expert. Chad emphasizes the importance of continual learning in product management, touching on key aspects like strategy, portfolio management, and team dynamics. He offers advice on leveraging diverse backgrounds, transitioning into product management, and aspiring to leadership roles. Chad's insights shed light on navigating the dynamic landscape of product management for those aiming to excel in the field.
In this episode, we discuss the vital skills of listening and observing and how these can lead to success in product management. Guest Monika Murugesan, a seasoned product executive, advisor, mentor, and guest lecturer at Northwestern University, shares practical tips are shared for enhancing these skills, leading to informed decision-making and successful product development.
Sheetal Rajpal, an amazing product leader with experience at Amazon, LendingTree, and PepsiCo joins the podcast to discuss the future of B2C subscription products (and all digital products, for that matter) and how ML, AI, data analysis, and more will be shaping that future.
Learn more at ProductVoices.com.
In this episode of Product Voices, our guest Kalia Aragon, Director of Product at Flatiron Health, discusses infrastructure and future-proofing products. She emphasizes the importance of diverse teams and a problem-solving approach. Kalia highlights the key attributes of future-proofing and advises product managers to engage early, build tech competency, and foster communication. She raises concerns about data privacy in AI advancements and encourages empathy and thoughtfulness in the field.
It's a great episode filled with insights and advice.
On this episode, we discuss how to stand out in the product management job market. Our guest is Chris Mason, co-founder of Intelligent People, a product management recruitment agency.
Chris shares his expertise on the evolving job market and the increasing visibility of product management as a discipline. He highlights the growing number of graduates and better training options in this field. Chris also mentions the rise of Chief Product Officers and product-led organizations. However, he cautions that the job market has become more competitive due to recent layoffs and an influx of talent. Big tech companies have been making cuts, leading to a flood of candidates. Despite the challenges, Chris believes there is still optimism for those pursuing a career in product management.
This is an episode you won't want to miss, whether you're currently in job market or not, this discussion has something for everyone.
In this episode, we explore the crucial relationship between the Chief Product Officer (CPO) and the Chief Technology Officer (CTO). We discuss the need for partnership, open communication, and trust between these roles. Our guest, Jodi McDermott, shares valuable insights on building a strong CPO-CTO foundation. We emphasize the importance of compromise, alignment, and transparency in leadership, as well as fostering a unified team culture.
Listen for insights on...
- Building a Strong Foundation between CPO and CTO
- Handling Tension between CPO and CTO
- The Importance of Showing Work and Friction Points
- The Power of Repeating and Sharing the Vision
- Building a Unified Team: Breaking Down Silos
- Effective Communication and Leadership in Scaling Organizations
- Creating a Human and Mentoring Environment
In this episode, we discuss the book "Product Momentum Gap" with authors Andrea Saez and Dave Martin. We explore indicators of a momentum gap in product management and the importance of aligning on customer value. Implementing the product value creation plan (VCP) helps filter out requests that don't align with defined value. Regularly articulating the VCP ensures alignment with the product strategy. We discuss the need for clear business and product strategies. Listen to the episode then get the book today!
Natalia Burina, a product leader with deep expertise in AI, joins this episode to discuss Generative AI and its potential impact for product managers. The conversation with Natalia, a former leader at Meta, Salesforce, Samsung, eBay, and Microsoft, weaves through many important focus areas, including:
- The potential and limitations of generative AI.
- Generative AI and its potential impact on business.
- AI technology and its applications in product development.
- AI technology risks and challenges in product management.
- Cultivating psychological safety for AI teams.
- Generative AI, product management, and leadership.
Find out more at ProductVoices.com.
In this episode of Product Voices, Gayatri Diwan, a seasoned product leader, joins to discuss product strategy and its importance in product management.
She emphasizes that product strategy should answer three important questions:
- Why the product is needed
- Who it is being built for, and
- What it aims to achieve.
Gayatri also shares her seven-step plan for creating a product strategy:
- Who is your customer?
- What is the problem statement?
- What is the impact and benefit to the customer with supporting data?
- What is the ideal state? What does good look like?
- What is our criteria for success and how will we measure our success metrics?
- What are the core product tenets or principles?
- What are the key pillars and themes we want to invest in?
Throughout the conversation, Gayatri stresses the significance of involving the right stakeholders, having a shared understanding of the problem, and aligning with them for success.
Learn more at ProductVoices.com/gayatridiwan.
Melissa Perri and Denise Tilles, authors of Product Operations: How Successful Companies Build Better Products at Scale, discuss the concept of product operations and why it is crucial for product teams and organizations. Product operations is the enablement function of product management, providing data and insights for strategic decision-making and ensuring alignment within the product development lifecycle. As organizations scale, product operations become increasingly important in managing complexity, prioritizing strategies, fostering transparency, and facilitating collaboration across departments.
Melissa and Denise decided to write the book on product operations after realizing the need for a resource for product managers and stakeholders. Their goal was to share their framework, which revolves around three pillars: business and data insights, customer and market insights, and process and governance. They wanted to get ahead of the growing trend of product operations and provide a structure for enabling product teams.
We dive deeper into each of these topics, starting with business and data insights. This pillar focuses on extracting information from current systems and analyzing it through a product lens. Many companies focus on financial metrics in board meetings but fail to analyze the data in a way that benefits product development. By implementing cohort analysis and utilizing internal information from financial, sales, product development, and HR systems, leaders can make data-driven product decisions and effectively monitor product strategies and performance. To bridge the gap between business skills and technology skills in product management, financial acumen classes for product managers have been introduced.
Next, we discuss customer and market insights, which provide qualitative and anecdotal perspectives from users. Product operations help set up the infrastructure for research and enable teams to conduct repeatable research by building tools and finding ways to engage users. Product managers should maintain a strong understanding of market insights to stay connected with customers.
We then share a real-life case study on streamlining user research processes and discuss the importance of process and practice in the context of product operations. Establishing clear guidelines and consistency in working approaches helps product managers focus on strategic work rather than getting caught up in unnecessary tasks. Product operations, when done right, brings efficiency and consistency without adding bureaucratic processes.
We emphasize the need for transparency and tracking in companies and explain that product operations can be implemented gradually, starting with one pillar and then expanding to others as priorities shift. It is crucial to showcase successful case studies and demonstrate the potential benefits of product operations to gain buy-in from the organization. The decision to start a product operations team depends on factors such as the number of product managers, scaling plans, and the need for structure and efficiency in managing data and processes.
We conclude by advising listeners to start somewhere and focus on the pillar that provides the most value. The book mentioned earlier serves as a valuable resource, offering advice, insights, frameworks, and case studies for anyone interested in product operations.
Overall, this conversation provides a comprehensive overview of product operations and its importance in organizations, offering practical insights and guidance for implementation.
In this episode, we explore the Octalysis Framework with expert Amit Arora to understand how it drives product adoption. The conversation covers the 8 core drivers of customers: Epic Meaning, Accomplishment, Empowerment, Ownership, Social Influence, Scarcity, Unpredictability, and Avoidance. We discuss the relevance of psychological drivers and the importance of human emotions in decision-making. Amit emphasizes the framework's applicability in both B2C and B2B contexts and highlights the need for fine-tuning and continuous education. Success stories and measurement techniques are shared to illustrate its effectiveness. Overall, the conversation emphasizes staying informed and connected with customer behaviors and motivators to drive product adoption and success.
In this episode of Product Voices, we venture into a world transformed by emerging technologies, with esteemed guests Eva Agapaki, Tatyana Mamut, Katharina Koerner, and Yuying Chen-Wynn. These tech pioneers offer their insights into emerging technologies that will impact our world for years to come.
We grapple with the immense promises of AI as it has evolved from predictive to generative, and from domain-specific to generalizable - while acknowledging the monumental challenges and responsibilities tied to this potent tool. We discuss the future of product management in the AI era, and the panel offers advice for product managers on the skills that will be needed to succeed.
This episode is brought to you in partnership with Product Advisory Collective, a firm that accelerates product with curated Product-Leader Fit™ and outcomes-driven advisory and consulting services.
In this episode of the Product Voices podcast, we speak with Yasmin Kothari, the product director for Bumble for Friends. Bumble for Friends is an app designed to connect people nearby who share similar interests and friendship goals. It provides a convenient way to expand your friendship circle, with features like group conversations and a 72-hour response window. Yasmin shares insights on building meaningful connections through technology and excelling in product management. Download Bumble for Friends and join us in combatting loneliness with technology.
What if there was a roadmap to break into the dynamic field of product management? We've got Rajat Tiwari on the show today, a promising future product manager and current master's student at Johns Hopkins, to guide you through his personal journey. Rajat's humble beginnings dreaming of Silicon Valley led to the creation of a hospitality website showcasing his web development and API knowledge. He offers insights on how finding a unique selling point can be the game-changer in this highly competitive market.
Rounding off our fascinating conversation, Rajat dives into the importance of preparation for job interviews, not merely job applications, in product management. He also underscores how traditional practices like patience, user empathy, and understanding the customer's needs should be a part of every product manager's repertoire. The future belongs to those combining unique strengths with state-of-the-art technology tools. Tune in for Rajat's insights that promise to be invaluable for anyone contemplating a career in product management.
Get ready for a deep dive into the world of product consulting with our special guest, the seasoned consultant, entrepreneur, and leader, Mary Beth Snodgrass. Buckle in as we traverse the terrain of product consulting and its growing popularity, tackling topics from managing product challenges to exploring the gig economy. Mary Beth takes us inside her collective, the PAC, shedding light on their unique, results-oriented approach to advising product teams on strategy and diversity.
Stepping further into the sphere, we delve into the competencies of a product leader, the specific hurdles faced by women in tech, and the power of collective intelligence in driving product. Mary Beth discusses the importance of real-world learning and how product consultants can augment organizations. Pondering over the role of advisory boards and proper scoping in product consulting, we unravel the myriad ways consultants add value and how to determine the best fit for your organization.
In the grand finale, Mary Beth illuminates the path to setting up a consulting practice. From the financial aspects and risk profiles to the art of building your brand, she provides sage advice for budding consultants. We also turn our focus to the crucial role of business development in product consulting, touching on sales best practices and strategies for assessing your strengths. So, if you're ready to discover the depth and breadth of opportunities in product consulting, don't miss this enlightening conversation.
Priya Kasi-Chari, senior director of product management at PeopleReady, joins us on Product Voices to share her inspiring story of resilience and success. Her unique blend of creative pursuits - including classical dance, language learning, and sewing - has greatly shaped her product management career, bringing a refreshing perspective to the industry.
But what's the secret sauce to a thriving product management career? Priya believes it lies in developing multifaceted skills, from technology to innovation. She emphasizes the value of curiosity, adaptability, and empathy - all critical traits that have propelled her as a great product manager and product leader. And for those of you contemplating a career shift into product management without having traditional experience, Priya drops some gold nuggets of advice that you can't afford to miss.
Tune in for a stimulating episode packed with a wealth of knowledge.
More at ProductVoices.com.
Ever wondered how the magic word 'no' can catapult your product management career to a whole new level? Then it's time to tune in! We're graced with the presence of Jo McCawley, a senior director of product and seasoned veteran of the ad tech world, and he's ready to reveal the importance of saying 'no' in product management. We touch on everything from setting boundaries to tackling tricky conversations, all with the aim of safeguarding your strategy, mental health, and professional relationships.
In this lively discussion, McCawley highlights the art of declining with grace, using her 15 years of experience to illustrate how this simple tactic can amplify your career and make you a better ally to your team and customers. It's not just about saying 'no', it's about how you say it! McCawley also takes us through some unconventional methods she's employed to practice the art of refusal, including a boundary workshop at a cuddle party! This is an episode jam-packed with pivotal insights and strategies, so don’t miss out on this opportunity to sharpen your product management skills.
Unlock the power of data with Graham Reed, a seasoned product management professional, as he reveals how data can transform your product management strategies. Can you imagine how understanding data can help to build better products and make effective decisions? Graham, who leads product operations at Cobalt, shares interesting insights from his 12-year journey in the world of product management, a trip that has been filled with data-informed decisions, challenges, and triumphs.
We also tackle the hot topic of AI, its potentials and limitations. Are we overlooking the ethical considerations of AI? Graham urges us not to rush into AI without fully understanding its implications, especially in relation to the lack of transparency with AI data sets. This conversation is not just about data, it's about the approach to data as a tool for product management. Join us on this intriguing journey with Graham Reed at the helm, and equip yourself with a new perspective on data's role in product management.
In this great conversation with Beks Yelland, we delve into the ins and outs of "product tech" and the "product industry" and its evolving impact on product teams and product managers.
As product management has become more visible and popular, there are more and more tools, resources, frameworks, and more being thrust upon product managers. Has it become too much?
Beks sheds light on the best ways to steer clear of unnecessary complexities, adopt a mission-driven approach, and manage stakeholder relationships.
Welcome to Product Voices, where we spotlight the brightest minds in the world of product management! Today Jennifer Spanos, a seasoned expert in the CPG and software product management realm, joins us for a chat that will challenge your thinking and give you an edge in your product management journeys. With a rich repository of knowledge, Jennifer shares the importance of striking a balance between domain and product knowledge. One could even say, product management is an art that finds its beauty in solving the right problems and creating value for clients and businesses.
As we traverse through the episode, we focus on a fascinating blend of product and domain knowledge. Are you inclined to believe that being in the customer's seat can provide fresh insights into problem-solving? We sure are and Jennifer's experiences prove just that! In fact, her journey speaks volumes about the merits of questioning mind that digs deep into an industry's nooks and corners.
Listen in, this is one episode you wouldn't want to miss!
See more at https://www.productvoices.com/post/jenniferspanos
Get ready to unravel the true meaning of culture within organizations with our incredible guest, Tatyana Mamut. Tatyana breaks it down for us by highlighting how culture is much more than workplace benefits - it's the environments and structures that leaders establish, shaping what their teams can or can't achieve. So, if your organization isn't hitting the mark, it might be time to consider the top leadership's influence on the culture - a factor you might have overlooked!
As we continue the journey with Tatyana, she enlightens us on the importance of understanding a company's culture when you're eyeing a leadership role. Be prepared to dive deep into self-reflection, as it is crucial to know your values and be open about them during the interview. But, how can you figure out the culture of a company you're yet to join? It turns out, asking questions about past successes, failures, and existing systems can provide a sneak peek into the company's way of life. Whether you're a seasoned leader or an ambitious product manager, this episode is packed with insights and advice to help you navigate and shape your company's culture for the better. Buckle up for a culture ride with Tatyana Mamut - it's one you won't want to miss!
Are you ready to unlock the dynamic relationship between data and product management? We sat down with Mike Alvarez, a seasoned tech guru and the CTO and Head of Product for NeuZeit Group, who gave us an exploratory journey of how data can be a product in itself, or a catalyst for fantastic products, and shares valuable insights on how to ensure that data enriches a product without overshadowing its core offerings.
Ever wonder how data technology will change in the era of AI? In the second half of our chat, Mike zeroes in on the power of AI and ML, showing us how these tools can unearth insights we could only dream of just a year or so ago. He also emphasizes that domain knowledge and understanding your field is key to effectively leveraging data and offers some smart advice to product stakeholders looking to amp up their data literacy.
So, whether you're a seasoned tech veteran or a newbie seeking to gain a foothold in the world of data technology, this episode is a must-listen.
Find more at ProductVoices.com.
Ever wondered how to navigate through the labyrinth of career moves in product management? This episode promises to be your definitive guide. Our guest, Cassidy Fein, shares her wealth of experience, gained from Pendo, Vimeo, and Echo 360. Listen in as she unveils how to identify the right roles and companies and strategize your career moves. We also discuss the current market pulse and how to connect with the right people in the right place.
It's not just about the right career path, but also about finding roles that ignite your passion and resonate with your values. Cassidy offers valuable insight into understanding an organization's product, business model, and revenue streams, and how these impact your day-to-day role.
Shifting gears to long-term career planning, we emphasize the importance of being flexible in handling life's unpredictable turns. Weighing up the pros and cons of specialization versus generalization, we also arm you with strategies for managing people effectively.
So, if you're keen to steer your product management career towards long-term success, this episode is a must-listen!
What if you could unlock secrets to managing product scale-ups without falling into common pitfalls or inviting burnout? This episode, we bring you just that, with our expert guest, Marissa Fong. With a decade of experience under her belt, Marissa shares her unique insights from her journey across various industries. Listen in as we discuss strategies, processes, and skills necessary for successful scale-ups, and navigate the complex world of product management.
Learn more at ProductVoices.com.
Are you striking the right balance between customer focus and business acuity in your product management career? Join us as we welcome Frank Tisellano, a B2B product leader with experience at Google, Kaseya, and others. Frank shares his journey and realization of the importance of this balance. Discover how understanding the impact a product has on a company's business is key for success and prioritization, and learn how to become more commercially focused product people.
We also discuss common mistakes in product management, the need for developing a better understanding of the business side of the work, and the potential impact of product managers entering the field with limited or no business experience. Listen in as we explore building a well-rounded skillset and examine how product managers can use their business acumen to drive success in their products. Don't miss this opportunity to elevate your awareness and understanding of the business side of product management!
Learn more from Frank at ft.io. And find more on the episode at ProductVoices.com.
Aakash Gupta, the Product Growth guy and VP Product at Apollo, joins to discuss how to build a flywheel.
We discuss:
- What is a flywheel and what does it mean?
- What are some prerequisites that a business needs to have in place in order to succeed in building a flywheel?
- The biggest mistakes that are made when trying to build a flywheel across your organization.
- And much more!
Learn more at ProductVoices.comand subscribe to the podcast on your favorite platform.
Also, be sure to subscribe to Aakash's newsletter!
Victoria Ku, director of product at Highnote, joins the podcast to discuss finding your voice as a product manager. Such an important and fun conversation.
We discuss...
- How to find your voice as a product manager.
- How to best use that voice in the workplace
- How leaders can best help their team find their voice.
- What impact will payments have on the world in the future? (a bonus discussion based on Victoria's expertise)
Learn more at ProductVoices.com.
Kareem Mayan, co-founder of Savio, joins this episode to discuss how great product teams leverage customer and product feedback for better products, and specifically how feedback can help us innovate on and optimize existing products.
We discuss:
- What’s the difference between innovation and invention?
- What are the biggest mistakes product teams are making when it comes to leveraging feedback?
- Do product teams really have the data they need?
- Best practices for how to use feedback most effectively.
- And more
More at ProductVoices.com
Janna Bastow, CEO of ProdPad, joins this episode to discuss how product teams can build and use successful roadmaps. She also shares some insights on what makes great product managers and how to stand out when trying to move into product management from other roles.
Highlights:
On roadmaps...
- What is a roadmap?
- What are the prerequisites for a roadmap? (hint: you can’t have a really successful roadmap without having a vision)
- A roadmap is a prototype of your strategy (wow! what a great way to think about it)
- How do teams use a roadmap?
- How often do you update your roadmap?
And some general advice for current and aspiring product managers:
- Core skills that a great product manager needs
- How to stand out from the crowd when trying to move into product management
Learn more at ProductVoices.com.
In this episode, Dave Dame, director of product accessibility at Microsoft joins to discuss how great teams and organizations use principles to best build products that are inclusive and accessible to users of all ability levels.
Highlights of the discussion:
- "It’s not a disability that holds me back, it is the environment.”
- Everyone will be disabled at some point, even temporarily. Products that were built to be accessible for one group often resonate with others, For example, closed captioning and audiobooks.
- Characteristics of high-performing teams that are building more accessible, inclusive products.
- Dave's advice on creating products that will make the world better than we found it.
Learn more at ProductVoices.com
Great product managers are fanatical about prioritizing the things that will make the biggest impact on their product.
In this episode we discuss some of the activities that product managers should not be leading and some ways that product managers can be fanatically prioritize their time.
We discuss:
- What a product manager is NOT
- Why product managers get pulled into some of these activities
- Creating your Contentment Mix
- The VITAL time management tool
Learn more at ProductVoices.com
Bria King, a product coach and product leader with experience in social good, networking, online marketing, and hospitality industries discusses a people-first approach to product management.
We discuss:
- What is people-first product management
- What are the benefits of people-first PM
- How leaders and teams can move toward a more people-first culture
Chris Butler joins to discuss the "product spine" - how teams can align strategies, roadmaps, and tasks, and make sound decisions along all of them.
Chris is an all-around product expert, currently Lead Product Manager at Google, with past stints as head of product operations at Cognizant and a product leader at Facebook, Kayak, and Waze.
We discuss:
- what is the product spine
- how teams can align along various abstractions such as the strategy, roadmaps, and task lists.
- how this alignment can lead to sounder decisions and ultimately better products
Learn more at ProductVoices.com and be sure to subscribe on your favorite podcast platform.
Ensuring your product has the proper level and types of services around it can improve and optimize the user experience. We often forget how important these services can be to the overall success of a product.
In this episode, Tania Sahai, product leader and founder of The Silver Pallete, joins to discuss how product managers and teams can focus on the important services that surround products.
Learn more at ProductVoices.com
On this episode, Matt LeMay joins to discuss Product Leadership. Matt LeMay is an internationally recognized product leader, author, and consultant who has worked with companies like Spotify, Audible, Mailchimp, and Google. He is the author of Agile for Everybody (O’Reilly Media, 2018) and Product Management in Practice (Second Edition O'Reilly Media, 2022), and has helped build and scale product management practices at companies ranging from early-stage startups to Fortune 500 enterprises.
Learn more at MattLeMay.com and ProductVoices.com.
When we think about building products, we most often think about products for external customers. However, many product teams create solutions for internal customers - those fellow employees who use our products to help them better do their job. These “internal products” can have a huge impact on the business.
In this episode, Sharon Aluma, Senior Technical Product Manager at Amazon Robotics joins to discuss the nuances of building products for internal customers and how to make the biggest impact with these solutions.
Learn more on ProductVoices.com.
We have a responsibility in product management to avoid exclusionary solutions and so it is incumbent upon us to learn inclusive design principles. We must learn how to design products that not only intentionally include but avoid unintentionally excluding groups. Sandra Camacho, a multicultural Inclusive Design strategist, educator, and advisor based in Paris, France, joins this episode to discuss inclusive design and share stories, insights, and tips for how we can learn and improve.
We discuss:
- What is inclusive design? How do we define it?
- What’s happening in the tech industry in terms of inclusive design.
- How does this inclusive design compare to the diversity and inclusion work that’s happening in so many organizations?
- Examples of things that have worked really well in inclusive design and some that didn't work so well.
- How can those who aren’t in a marginalized group approach this work in a way that matters?
Learn more at Sandra By Design or Inclusive Design Jam.
Find resources mentioned on the episode at ProductVoices.com
Dan Balcauski, founder and principal consultant at Product Tranquility, joins to discuss The Secret to Unlocking Value: How to Maximize Your Product's Price.
We discuss:
- Three types of value drivers
- How to know what our customers value
- How to measure pricing effectiveness
- How companies find their value metric
- The connection between customer segmentation and pricing
- And more!
Learn more at ProductVoices.com.
Innovation and product ideation is one of the core tenants of successful product management. We simply have to get this right in order to put impactful nuanced, valuable, differentiated products and solutions out in the market for our customers. In this episode, Jennifer Glenski, Director of Product Management for BMC Software's Innovation Labs joins to discuss innovation and product ideation and how product teams can succeed at these critical activities.
Learn more at ProductVoices.com.
Agency and accountability are so very important to the success of a product manager - not only embracing this themselves but also having the organization set up in a way and the culture set up in a way that expects accountability and allows agency with product managers. On this episode, Amanda Ralph, Principal Product Manager at Papercut, joins to discuss agency and accountability in product management.
EPISODE OUTLINE:
Why is agency so important in product management? 0:03
How can product leaders transform or empower when they’re in an environment where it’s more about feature-driven product delivery? 3:57
How product leaders can give their teams the agency they need while holding their teams accountable for value creation. 7:30
Why it’s so important to start with leadership and culture. 10:51
What are some things that may help a product manager who embraces the role but doesn’t quite know how to take hold of it? 15:11
How to tease out the right environment for a new product manager. 20:05
The importance of having a candid conversation with the product leader you’re interviewing with to better understand the environment before joining a new org. 24:01
The fun of product management is that you’re on a continuous learning journey, but it’s also hard. 29:18
On this episode,Jonathan Hensley, the CEO and Chief Product Officer at EMERGE and author of Alignment: Overcoming Internal Sabotage and Digital Product Failure, discusses why alignment is critical to product success, and what teams can do to become more aligned.
We discuss four types of alignment:
- Individual
- Team
- Organization
- Market
Product management is one of the best jobs in the world but it comes with great responsibility. If we are building products, we must ensure that we are putting inclusive products out in the world. And for leaders, inclusive leadership is paramount to a successful team and positive culture.
In this personal, poignant, and impactful episode, Stephanie Leue, Chief Product Officer of Doodle shares how she has become a better, more inclusive leader by learning about, embracing, and celebrating neurodiversity at home and at work.
Find more at ProductVoices.com.
There is a lot of buzz about product management. So many people want to get in the field. It is a fun, exciting profession and is getting the limelight like never before. But product management has been around for a long time. It has evolved over the years, thankfully. But much of modern product management is rooted in fundamental business principles. We sometimes overcomplicate product management and it can help to look back at the areas that tend to lead to success.
In this episode, Anneliese Olson, former SVP & Global GM for HP’s Print Category joins to discuss how we can leverage some foundational concepts to drive modern product management.
Listen to hear more on...
- Defining “fundamental business practices”
- Discussing “modern” product management
- How lifecycle management influences what we do
- What product managers can do to ensure these principles are being used to drive work and decisions
- how product leaders can create an environment conducive to success
- Advise for product folks can build their business acuity
Learn more at ProductVoices.com.
In this episode, Rich Mironov joins to discuss the core challenges of product managers and product leaders and how to combat these challenges.
We discuss:
- The reality of product managers leading with influence and no authority
- Balancing the long-term health of your product when so many of your stakeholders are focused on the short-term
Learn more at ProductVoices.com.
While it is impossible for me to pick top moments from this year. There are simply too many great moments. I have loved each and every one of the conversations I have had on the 47 episodes, and each guest has brought their own unique insights to the show and we've all learned from each one.
But in this episode, I highlight some moments that I found especially meaningful or insightful from Product Voices in 2022, including:
- Radhika Dutt as our very first guest!
- A powerful moment with Farah Rana on her "why"
- Amber Hall sharing her perspective on product management for physical, durable products
- John Fontenot telling us why the customer is NOT always right
- Navya Rehani Gupta educating us on product strategy through her unique product avocado approach
- Jen Yang Wong reminding product leaders not to overlook talented but green product managers because of our own insecurities around mentoring them
- Nils Davis discussing the importance of storytelling in product management
- Colleen Graneto sharing why storytelling is even more important in the age of asynchronous working
Find more at ProductVoices.com.
Saeed Khan joins to discuss five dysfunctions common across product teams. These include:
-
Poor Job Definitions
-
Under-skilled Product Managers
-
Poor Processes
-
Unclear Objectives
-
Weak Product Leadership
Tyler Guarino and Marie Eric, graduate students at Johns Hopkins University, join to discuss their invention Tastee Tape - an edible tape that helps secure burritos, wraps, and other foods.
What started as a school project has now been featured by Jimmy Fallon, Ryan Seacrest and many others, and was recently named one of Time's Top Inventions of 2022!
We discuss:
- How the idea came about
- The moment the team realized they had something more than a class project
- Advice for others with invention ideas
- What's next for Tastee Tape
Rex Chekal, principal product designer at TXI discusses user centric research, specifically:
- Why product innovation should be rooted in user research & what does that research look like
- How can product managers weigh the needs of two distinct user groups during the research and design process
- Defining a culture of innovation
- Threats to innovation within an organization
In this episode, Eva Beasley, Product Manager at UiPath shares her story about how she moved into a product management after years in technical support roles.
She shares why she thought the product manager role was for her, and we also discuss:
- how her time in technical support got her ready for the role in product
- being a woman in product
- advice to others on how to move into product
- how technical a PM needs to be
- if she was surprised by any aspects of the PM role
Learn more at ProductVoices.com.
Nada Buhendi is the CEO and certified master career coach at Unleashing Your Awesome. On this episode, she shares how she transitioned careers and the unique issues that arose from being an immigrant to a new country.
We discuss:
- Why she quit a job via text!
- Challenges of learning a new industry or role
- Unique challenges that immigrants have when changing jobs
- The personality types that tend to be great product managers
How can community of peers, mentors, and select side projects help your product management career?
In this episode, Naimeesha Murthy, VP Product at New Venture Labs and Founder of Products by Women, shares her journey in product management - including founding and growing a global networking and education community, leveraging mentors across her career and life, and finding side projects that stoke her passion - and how all of these have made her a better product person.
Do we need a separate product strategy or do we need to a plan to align our activities with an overarching business strategy? Ryan Frederick, author and Principal/Founder of AWHmakes the case for the latter in this episode.
"Strategy is supposed to be something that is singular. A company has a strategy not strategies."
Learn more:
Ryan's books are: The Founder’s Manual: A Guidebook for Becoming a Successful Entrepreneurand Sell Naked: And Other Advice for Growing and Managing Services Firms.
Mental health is a topic that is, thankfully, being spoken of more openly these days. Especially in roles like product management and technology where there is a lot of complexity, visibility, and pressure, it is really important to openly discuss issues around mental health.
In this important episode, special guests Graham Reed and Jacquelyn Guderley, founders of the Product Mind Community join to talk about why it was important for them to create a safe space for product professionals to come together, share, listen, and support each other.
How can we make better, more inclusive, more equitable, more conscious products?
In this episode, Lisa Zane, CEO and Founder of Conscious Product Development shares how product managers and product teams can build more conscious products and solve the right problems for the right reasons.
Learn more from Lisa at www.consciousproductdevelopment.comand find resources mentioned on the episode below:
- The Product Manager’s Career Guide
- Conscious Product Toolkit
- Define Your PM Career North Star Worksheet
- Finding Meaningful Problems to Solve
On this episode, Zachary Hanson joins to discuss his very unique version of remote work - living and working in Atlanta, Idaho, USA, a town with a population of 35 people. Yes, 35! The closest grocery store is four hours away. He has learned to live without instant connectivity and share some lessons that has come from that...
- Learning to find value in no meetings and lots of focus time
- Communicating succinctly and effectively
- Forced heads-down time can make all the difference
Zachary also just published a book about his unique lifestyle: Turning Feral. Be sure to check it out!
In this episode, with guest Prerna Kaul, Senior Technical Product Manager at Amazon, we dive deep into product management for Artificial Intelligence / Machine Learning products, including:
- Overview of AI / ML products
- Building a strategy for AI / ML products
- Designing AI / ML products
- Iterating and improving AI / ML products
- Root cause analysis for AI / ML products
- Getting into AI / ML product management as a career
- Resources to keep learning
Learn more at ProductVoices.com.
While product managers should first and foremost be experts on the market and the customer problem, it’s no secret that some level of understanding of the solution is important.
But what is that level? On this episode, we explore that question.
Jan Lukas Haslbeck, founder of NATE, joins to discuss:
- The difference between skills and literacy
- Why a product manager needs tech skills and/or literacy.
- What level of skills a product manager needs
- How to break down technical literacy for product managers
We "fail" a lot in product management too… a feature doesn’t resonate. A project goes off the rails. Our revenue or usage or retention numbers aren’t what we forecasted.
But we need to redefine failure. We need to realize that through this "failure", we learn. We grow. We become better. Emotional resilience is paramount for us in product management.
Susana Lopes, Director of Product at Onfido, shares her story on how she became resilient - through some really hard times.
We talk about:
- Susana's experience with product "failure" and how she learned to turn a negative into a positive
- How we can look at missteps as learning experiences
- Tips on being resilient in product management
Product managers often spend time on things that don't add the most value to their products. They're pulled in to put out fires or do other things that, while important at the time, may not necessarily be the things that will "move the needle" for their products.
This episode features guest David Pereira, Head of Product at Virtual Identity. David shares insights on:
- Reasons PMs sometimes don't prioritize time spent on the most important things
- What are the right things to prioritize and what should be deprioritized
- How orgs can set up an environment to foster prioritizing the right things
- What PMs can do even if their environment isn't too conducive for this
Learn more from David on his website and his Medium page.
Subscribe to Product Voices on your favorite platform or learn more at ProductVoices.com.
Product management is hot. Many people want to get into a career in product. And while there are lots of product manager job openings, companies and hiring managers most often expect product management experience and rarely take a chance on hiring someone without previous product experience.
In this episode, Jen Yang-Wong, Director of Product at Contrary Capital, joins to discuss:
- why hiring managers are reluctant to hire someone without previous product management experience,
- what they can do to get comfortable with taking a chance on someone,
- and what candidates can do to set themselves up for an opportunity.
We hear a lot about imposter syndrome in product and tech. Even the most confident of us can sometimes feel like we don't belong or deserve the place we're in.
On this episode, we look at imposter syndrome from a different perspective... how we can harness it for strength.
Sophie Lalonde, Group Product Manager at Productboard, talks about how you can leverage imposter syndrome to:
- Bring a fresh perspective to product discovery
- Let curiosity guide interactions with your community
- Help the product team form the right processes
- Enlist the help of your peers, and
- Trust yourself
Learn more at ProductVoices.com or read more about Sophie's insight on this topic in her article on BuiltIn.
We talk a lot about the hard skills needed in product management - technical knowledge, processes and frameworks, methodologies, financial acumen, etc., but truth be told, soft skills are every bit as important as the hard skills in successfully navigating the PM role.
On this episode, Manosai Eerabathini, product manager at Figma, shares his thoughts on:
- his own journey in product management
- the most important soft skills
- how those skills have evolved throughout his career
- how PMs can find their own style and superpower
Links to resources mentioned, transcript of the episode, and more at ProductVoices.com.Findmore of Manosai's insights on his website TheProductLens.com
In this episode, we are sharing an episode of the Women in Product Podcast - part of their Great PM Books Series. JJ Rorie interviews Radhika Dutt, author of Radical Product Thinking.
Learn more at https://www.womenpm.org/wip-podcastorproductvoices.com.
The product manager role can be fun, exhilarating, highly rewarding…. and difficult! There are so many cross-functional partners involved, so many moving parts, so many decisions to make. It can be quite difficult at times on our emotions and well-being.
This episode is all about the emotional side of PM, something we don’t talk about enough.
Nicole Daines, product leader at Rosie, joins the podcast to share her insights on:
- navigating the day-to-day of the product manager role.
- dealing with ambiguity and not always having a clear direction
- managing stakeholder engagement without getting burned out
- handling the 'meh' days
- avoiding assigning our self-worth to our work (good or bad)
Roadmaps are always a hot topic in product management. How to best use roadmaps? What should they represent? How to best connect them to strategy? Who should be involved with creating them? With whom should we share them? There aren’t that many teams and organizations that have really mastered the creation and use of roadmaps.
On this episode, Navya Rehani Gupta, Chief Product Officer at Peek, shares her unique approach to roadmap planning and communication.
There are few things more important in product management than communication. Product is an inherently cross-functional discipline that requires product teams to constantly communicate about all aspects of the product, the customer, the workstreams ongoing within the org. Effective communication is bedrock to success. One aspect of communication - and connecting with audiences - is storytelling. Storytelling is a powerful tool in a product manager’s toolbox.
Colleen Graneto, Product Manager at Airbnb and product coach and instructor, joins to podcast to share insights on how to improve our storytelling skills and use stories to engage internal partners and communicate the customer narrative.
Colleen shares wonderful examples and resources including Airbnb's ‘Snow White’ Storyboards - video 1 - article 1 - article 2.
Learn more at ProductVoices.com.
Organizations and product teams are always striving to improve. To optimize their operations, their structure, their workflows, and the ways in which the teams work. There are myriad “best practices” that can be deployed, and it’s sometimes quite difficult to know what is the best next change to make. What is the thing that if we improve upon, it will make the biggest impact. That is not always easy to pinpoint.
On this episode, Holly Hester-Reilly, the Founder and CEO of H2R Product Science, discusses how to know what the right next step is when applying best practices, using the the Product Science Principles: evidence-based product strategy, continuous discovery and delivery, and empowered teams.
A lot of people have been moving jobs over the past couple of years. The average tenure of a product manager seems to be shortening. Moving companies and even industries can be a good thing for someone’s career. New employees can bring new viewpoints, experiences, and an invigorating energy to the organization. But companies also must ensure that new product managers get onboarded and integrated into the team and culture as soon as possible.
This episode is all about how to successfully onboard product managers. Mirela Mus, founder of Product People, a product management consultancy with 42 full-time PMs who help serve interims in Europe's top product companies, brings her unique perspective on this topic.
Learn tips on how to onboard product managers effectively and how to measure successful onboarding. Plus hear examples of great and not-so-great onboarding.
Find the episode transcript and more at ProductVoices.com. Learn more about Product People at GetProductPeople.com.
In product management, we are on a constant learning journey. We are never really “done”. We’ve never learned everything there is. We never become absolutely perfect at a skill or mindset. There is always something to improve upon. And that can be quite tiring and frankly even difficult for our mental health.
This episode is about that continuous learning path of the product manager and the toll it can take on mental health. JJ Rorie is joined by Tiffany Chang, who leads a Product Management team at a B2B supply chain startup based in Toronto, Canada.
Tiffany shares her journey into product management, how she realized the constant learning journey can be fun but difficult, and ways she has learned to navigate the role and her well-being. It's an inspirational and honest account of the highs and lows of the role.
Learn more at ProductVoices.com.
Product management is a career where we constantly learn and evolve, which isn’t always easy. We often must get out of our comfort zone to learn new things and build new skills.
In this episode, Mudassir Mustafa, co-founder of Capabl, shares his journey into product management - from working on oil rigs to constructing commercial buildings to working in tech and product. It is an inspirational story of perseverance and pushing through comfort zones to build a fulfilling career.
Learn more at ProductVoices.com and MudassirMustafa.com.
What do all great product managers have in common, regardless of industry, type of product, or company environment?
In this episode, we discuss the 5 immutable truths of great product managers.
- They have exceptionally high customer intelligence.
- They are experts at building relationships.
- They are master communicators.
- They have uncommonly good judgment.
- They are fanatical about prioritizing their time.
While these are not the only skills a product manager needs, they form the foundation from which to pull in order to navigate the chaotic and rewarding world of product management.
Learn more at GreatProductManagement.com or ProductVoices.com.
These immutable truths are discussed in detail in JJ Rorie's book IMMUTABLE, which can be purchased at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop, or other major online book retailers.
Relationships in product management are bedrock to success. Some product managers find it easy to build relationships with peers but have a difficult time bridging these important connections with senior leaders. It may be an intimidation factor, or just simply not around them as much. But relationships with these folks are so important. And so product managers really must find ways to foster real connections with the leaders in the organization who have an impact on their products.
On this episode, Paul Ortchanian, founder and CEO of Bain Public, a product leadership firm, joins to speak about how product managers can best bridge that gap between themselves - and the product team - and senior leadership. He shares tips and resources on ways PMs can get out of their comfort zone and build real rapport with important leaders around the organization.
Learn more at ProductVoices.com and find some of the resources mentioned in the episode at https://blog.bainpublic.com/.
In this episode, Chad McAllister, PhD, founder of Product Mastery Now and host of the popular Product Mastery Now podcast (formerly known as The Everyday Innovator) joins to discuss common challenges he sees in product management and ways to overcome these challenges.
We discuss:
- Not spending enough time with customers
- Focusing on the solution more than the customer problem
- A lack of understanding of the organization's strategy
To learn more, visit ProductVoices.com. You can find information on more challenges in product management in Chad's 10 Changes Product Teams Should Make Now to Consistently Launch Products Customers Love.
Remote work is commonplace in product management and will continue to be for most organizations. As companies and employees navigate what work arrangements will be most optimal for all, there are some things we are learning about how to succeed in remote first and hybrid environments.
Joao Craveiro (Cravvie), staff product manager at Remote, joins JJ to share his insights on various flavors of remote work and ways product teams can succeed across all flavors.
You can learn more at ProductVoices.com and connect with Cravvie on his website jcraveiro.com.
Product Managers without non-technical background often have a lack of confidence in their abilities, thinking technical knowledge is imperative for the PM role. That is not necessarily true, even with technical product likes data or machine learning (ML).
On this episode, Raj Muhar, Director of Product at Innovid, shares how she navigated her product management career in a technical field without a technical background.
We discuss the day in the life of a data / ML PM, advice for those wanting to get into this product area, and resources to help with the learning journey.
Good communication is such a bedrock of everything we do in product management, from our relationships with our internal stakeholders to our customer communications, our go to market strategy, everything is impacted by communication.
This episode is all about communication and what that means for us in product management. Nils Davis, author of The Secret Product Manager Handbook, host of Secrets of Product Management podcast, and senior product manager at TriNet, shares insights and tips on how to weave stories into your world to persuade and influence others.
Learn more at ProductVoices.com or connect with Nils at AlltheResponsibility.com.
There seems to be a connection between the skills and mindset it takes to be an entrepreneur and a product manager. In this episode, Raena Akin-Deko, Founder and CEO of Verve Strategy, discusses ways that product managers and entrepreneurs can learn from each other and leverage similar skills to be successful.
John Fontenot, author of Never Assume: Ten Fatal Assumptions Great Product Managers Never Make, shares insights from his new book and provides listeners with tips to avoid common assumptions in product management.
This is part two of a two-part episode.
John Fontenot, author of Never Assume: Ten Fatal Assumptions Great Product Managers Never Make, shares insights from his new book and provides listeners with tips to avoid common assumptions in product management.
This is part one of a two-part episode.
What is the future of work and what can we do to ensure the future is better for everyone?
In this episode, Susan Liao, founder of Startups for All, shares her insights on how the future of work may look and ways that we can navigate - and even steer - some of those changes.
"So tell me tell me about your experience as a woman of color in business and in product management."
"The short answer is I'm the only one. In many instances in my career, I've been one of few or the only. And I'm currently the only black female product manager at my company. "
We have a diversity problem in product management. On this episode, Amber Hall, product leader at Kohler talks about what it's like to be a Black woman in product and how we can get more women of color into the product management discipline.
Change is an inevitable part of product management. We don’t deal in absolutes. Product management is a system of interconnected activities, people, data, incentives, objectives, predictions, and decisions. With all that nuance and all those conditions, there is no way we can exist in a rigid, static environment. Change is a part of our world in product, but not every organization handles change in the best way possible. And not every person embraces change. So the way we handle change in product is an important topic.
On this episode, Lori Edwards, Associate Director of Product at Niche, discusses how change management principles and frameworks can help us in product management.
Is product management different for B2B products than for B2C products? Obviously there are a lot of similarities but there are some nuances that are important to understand. On this episode Jason Knight, product leader and host of the wildly popular podcast One Knight in Product, is here to discuss how B2B product managers can be successful .
Product management seems to simultaneously be constantly changing and also staying the same over time. Things come, things go. Many things remain from the core principles of long ago. But one thing that is certain is that folks working in product management must stay on top of trends in our product management world and what’s going on all around our customers.
Grant Hunter and Steve Johnson join JJ Rorie on this episode to talk about what is happening in product management today and what trends we see coming in the next few years.
Customers need to understand the product and the value a product brings them. Internal teammates need to understand the product so they can support, market, or sell it.
In some cases, part of a product manager’s unwritten responsibility is to also champion the product management function across the organization.
Conveying information and knowledge is a valuable skills for folks in product management. In this episode, Andrea Saez, senior product marketing manager at Product School discusses how to effectively educate others on your products.
Episode 007: We answer the following questions:
1) Advice for people in non-product roles to best get involved and support and engage with product managers?
2) What are some of the best ways for a product manager to gather customer data?
3) With all the discussions and implementations of KPIs and OKRs, how can a Product Manager "keep things simple" and effective to ensure a successful product?
Episode 006: Amber Hall, Product Leader at Kohler: "My point of view is we as humans exist in a physical 3D body that exists in a 3D world. And for the most part, the things that we interact with every single day have some physical element to them. Even most of the software that is created by way of tech companies often exist on some sort of physical embodiment to deliver that software. And so I think the short answer is we as humans live in the physical world. And so there is literally all sorts of manufacturing industries where physical product is created every single day that needs product managers."
In this episode, Prerna Kaul, Senior Technical Product Manager at Amazon, where she has built AI/ML products in the payments, healthcare, and Alexa domains, shares her expertise on building successful artificial intelligence platforms.
We discuss the basics of AI platforms, differences in AI and other types of software, skills needed to be a successful product manager in AI, and more.
In this episode, Adam Thomas, a technologist in Harlem, New York, shares insights on decision science and how it can help product managers make better decisions. We discuss his Survival Metrics framework - a method that helps product teams determine if an initiative is worth investing in, pivoting, or stopping completely. Adam shares insights, wisdom, and helpful resources on decision-making, judgment, and prioritization.
In this episode, Diana Soler shares key learnings from her efforts in creating the product ops function at AppDirect, where she is Senior Product Operations Manager.
"Simply put, Product Operations enables the Product Manager to do their best work. This is accomplished by ensuring they have access to the right tools, access to the right data and that the processes they follow make sense and are optimized to help drive customer happiness."
"A vision-driven approach to product begins with a clear picture of the change you want to bring to the world. This vision must then permeate every aspect of the product's design." - Radhika Dutt, Radical Product Thinking.
In this episode of Product Voices, host JJ Rorie chats with Radhika Dutt about her book, Radical Product Thinking: The New Mindset for Innovating Smarter. We discuss the product diseases that can infect organizations and the elements of radical product thinking that can help avoid those diseases. You won't want to miss this conversation!
Anyone in product management is on a constant learning journey. It is a complex role with many moving parts at all times. Markets are dynamic. Customer needs are transient. Technologies evolve. The ways in which we work change. We are always learning and adapting.
The Product Voices podcast gives us an outlet to hear from folks who have been there and done that. Succeeded. Failed. And learned.
Welcome to Product Voices!